Healthy eating and physical activity habits are important to a child's well-being. Eating too much and exercising too little can lead to overweight and related health problems that can follow children into their adult years. Because children grow at different rates at different times, it is not always easy to tell if a child is overweight.

Do not put your child on a weight-loss diet unless your health care provider tells you to. If children do not eat enough, they may not grow and learn as well as they should. If you do beleive you child is on the wrong track, instead of singling out your overweight child, it is a good idea to involve the whole family in building healthy eating and physical activity habits. It benefits everyone and does not single out the child who is overweight.

Here are some tips to encourage healthy eating habits for your child:

• Make sure your child knows that he or she is loved, is special, and is important. Children's feelings about themselves often are based on their parents' feelings about them. This can reduce eating out of depression.
• Accept your child at any weight. Children will be more likely to accept and feel good about themselves when their parents accept them.
• Listen to your child's concerns about his or her weight. Overweight children probably know better than anyone else that they have a weight problem.
• Serve more fruits and vegetables (fresh, frozen, or canned).
• Buy fewer soft drinks and high fat/high calorie snack foods like chips, cookies, and candy.
• Eat breakfast every day. Skipping breakfast can leave your child hungry, tired, and looking for less healthy foods later in the day.
• Plan healthy meals and eat together as a family. Eating together at meal times helps children learn to enjoy a variety of foods.
• Eat fast food less often. When you visit a fast food restaurant, try the healthful options offered.
• Start with small servings and let your child ask for more if he or she is still hungry.

Encouraging daily physical activity is also a good idea to expose to your children. Set a good example. If your children see that you are physically active and have fun, they are more likely to be active and stay active throughout their lives. You can also encourage your child to join a sports team or class, such as soccer, dance, basketball, or gymnastics at school or at your local community or recreation center.

Some fun low-impact physical activity suggestions include:

• Riding a bike
• Swinging on a swing set
• Jumping rope
• Bouncing a ball
• Playing hopscotch